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Anyone able to create hotspot on Surface Pro 3?

OP
strollin

strollin

Member
Thanks but there's no need for you to check at work. It's because I have an unlimited data plan. My kids have the same phone with a measured data plan and are able to create a hotspot with the phone (they don't even need to use FoxFi).
 
OP
strollin

strollin

Member
My problem is solved (although still can't create hotspot on SP3). My carrier (Verizon) sent out a system update for my LG G2 phone and now FoxFi works to use my phone as a hotspot! I'm typing this in from my SP3 connected via wifi to my phone.

It's still a curiosity to me why creating a hotspot doesn't work on the SP3 since it works on all the netbooks and laptops I tried.
 

hy3301hy

New Member
I am trying to create a hotspot on my SP3 in order to share the tethered connection to my cell phone. I've tried manually typing in the netsh commands, tried VirtualRouter and Connectify but the problem is that I always receive this message "The wireless local area network interface is powered down and doesn't support the requested operation." whenever I attempt to activate the hotspot. The Marvell adapter is powered on (wifi is active) so why do I get this message?

Anybody got this working on their SP3? Appreciate any suggestions.

Exactly same message in my case. It seems that we are out of luck with Surface Pro 3 since it may only have one network interface card. I think others are not understanding what we are talking about.
 
OP
strollin

strollin

Member
I haven't tried it lately so don't know if it works with latest firmware updates.

Since I can now create a hotspot on my phone, I don't have a need to use the SP3 for a hotspot. Good luck to those still wanting this to work. Hopefully, MS will update the Marvel driver to allow this functionality.
 

Markc05

New Member
I haven't tried it lately so don't know if it works with latest firmware updates.

Since I can now create a hotspot on my phone, I don't have a need to use the SP3 for a hotspot. Good luck to those still wanting this to work. Hopefully, MS will update the Marvel driver to allow this functionality.

Tested it again today, no the Nov update did not fix this :(
 

padmaker

New Member
I have the same exact issue with creating the wifi hot spot on my surface pro 3. I believe its the Marvel driver.
I do exactly the same thing on my Asus AT100 and no problems.
With the Surface pro 3 I get this error "The attached device is not functioning".
Damn, I can share my internet with my $400 Asus. I go and Spend $1500 for a Surface Pro 3 and I can't.
Without Sharing my internet I can't use my Roku when I travel. Why did I trust micorsoft.

I even tried reinstalling devices.

When I go to the device in Network and sharing and choose sharing for Ethernet 2 there is no drop down list on what to share it to.
This could be the reason we can't get it to work. I know when you click share there is supposed to be a drop down list so that I can pick local area connection or something like that. But i don't get any drop down list.

Please help. I need this to work so when i am traveling I can use my roku stick to watch my movies on Vudu or Netflix.
 

bluegrass

Well-Known Member
Maybe your phone can be a hotspot. I guess eventually MS will get it ironed out.

Out of curiosity if you were able to use your Surface as a hotspot what would you plug your Roku into. I guess the motel TV if it had a HDMI input.
 
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padmaker

New Member
Yea, I could use my phone as i have a unlock Note3. But the 4g is slow in Kentucky and AT&T will regulate it once I get to 5 gig even though I have unlimited data.
Yea the Roku is a stick and it goes into the hdmi on the TV. It doesn't have any feature to login into a hotel wifi and give all the information. Can only connect where a user name and passwork is requested. So I use the hotspot on my laptop to connect the roku to.

I normally use my Macbook Pro but i got the Surface Pro 3 for the cool factor and the touch screen. But again, i think Microsoft is getting better so I spend money only not to be able to do some of the things I could already do with a cheaper machine.

The Asus T100 (something like that) is really good. But not as fast as the Surface but everything works like its supposed to.
Hope they fix this soon.
 

padmaker

New Member
just spent 45 minutes on the phone with the Surface Pro 3 Support team. Unfortunately the girl I was speaking to new less than i do.
Anyway after 40 minutes of her having me do somethings (not even telling me to go to the command prompt) I told her I heard the issue is the Marvell Avastar Wireless - Ac Network Controller doesn't have this function, she put me on hold.
Then came back to me after 5 minutes to tell me that the Surface Pro 3 at this point in time doesn't have the ability to create a wifi hotspot.
Yes I can use my phone to create the hotspot. But then after 5 gig AT&T will send me a text stating although I have unlimited data plan that they are lowering my bandwidth because of excessive use. (Their way of saying we know you don't have a tethering plan so we are pad to bring you to a crawl). So I am going to take the $1500 paper weight back and use my MacBook Pro Retina or my $400 Asus.
In my book a laptop that doesn't perform everything that it is supposed to do should have never been sold in the first place.
But wait, its a Microsoft product and everything they sell is broken. Vista was a great example of that.
 

padmaker

New Member
Now after all my complaining I found another way around this.
I went to walmart and bought a router for 29.95. Belkin G54/N150 Wifi N router.
Now I'll tell you how to get this to work in a hotel.
1) Plug your Surface Pro 3 into the either jack using a usb Ethernet adopter. You should already have this if your trying to create a wifi hot spot.
2) Turn it on and then bring the charm up by swiping right to left from the right side of the screen.
Click settings and you should see the either net connected.
3) start your browser (if it doesn't come up automatically) and login to the hotel wifi through the browser.
4) After you have connected and your browser is working shut down.
5) Now take the Ethernet cable plug it into the Modem Port of the router.
6) Take another Ethernet cable and plug that in from your Ethernet adopter to any open Ethernet port on the back of the router.
7) Turn the router on.
8) Turn you Surface pro on
9) open your browser and you should go right to the setup software of the router.
10) Give it and different SSID and Password that you will remember
11) Click on advanced settings
12) Click on clone computer MAC address.
13) Click save and the router will reboot and connect directly to the hotel internet.
14) Turn the Surface Pro off and unplug the USB Ethernet adopter
15) Turn on your surface Pro
16) Bring up the charm, click settings
17) See your router SSID and chose it to connect to.
18) Put in your password and you are connected
19) Start your browser and it all should work.
20) Start up your Roku and goto network settings
21) Connect to your wireless router and put in the password.

Now you don't have to leave your laptop on all the time to have a wifi hotspot. You have your own wireless router working through the hotels Ethernet giving you access to the internet. You can also connect any other devices you have to your router and not pay the hotel extra money for wifi access for more than one device.

Bottom line is, the problem with the Surface Pro 3 is a blessing in disguise. I would leave my other laptops on all night long. Now I don't have to worry about burning it out. And when the router does finally break (many years later) I'll just spend another $30.

If you travel like I do, this will be a blessing to you as well.
Hope this helps anyone who had the same problem I did.

Now I guess I'll keep my Surface Pro 3. Other than this issue, this thing is cool and everything else works just great.
Microsoft, I just bought you some time to fix this internet sharing issue.
 
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